Our   Dick 


By 
Brown  Harrington 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
AT   LOS  ANGELES 


ROBERT  ERNEST  COWAN 


OUR    DICK 


OUR    DICK 


WILLARD    BROWN    HARRINGTON 


SAN  FRANCISCO 

C.    A.    MURDOCK    &    CO. 

1894 


COPYRIGHT,  1893, 

BY 
c.  A.  MVRDOCK  &  Co. 


TO 

GEORGE  T.  ANGELL, 

OF  BOSTON,  MASS., 
THE  ANIMALS'  FRIEND, 
^  THIS   TRUE    STORY    IS   INSCRIBED, 

J2          WITH  THE  HOPE  THAT  IT  MAY,  IN  SOME  SLIGHT 
^  DEGREE,  PROMOTE  THE  GOOD  WORK 

TO    WHICH    HIS    LIFE    HAS 
BEEN    DEVOTED. 


31183t> 


PREFACE. 


^VNE  sometimes  hears  parents,  of  the  kind 
^  that  I  fear  will  think  Dick's  little  story 
only  a  bit  of  nonsense,  reproach  the  little  child 
who  asks  for  a  second  helping  of  Christinas  pud- 
ding with  being  "greedy  as  a  dog."  Dick  has  not 
yet  told  me  the  opinion  of  his  race  of  that  other 
species  which  asserts  that  human  affection  and 
fidelity  are  virtues  of  the  soul,  but  that  these  vir- 
tues, when  shown  by  dogs,  proceed  merely  from 
instinct.  I  am  inclined  to  believe,  however,  that 
there  is  current  among  those  of  our  four-footed 
relations  who  have  had  a  hard  time  of  it  a  little 
saying  which,  in  our  speech,  signifies  "selfish  as 
a  man."  The  author,  who  believes  with  Agassiz 
and  Theodore  Parker,  that  love  and  constancy  in 
men  and  dogs  proceed  from  the  same  high 
source,  trusts  that  the  supposititious  doggie 
proverb  will  apply  to  none  of  the  readers  of 
"Our  Dick." 

Man  Francisco,  December,  1893. 


A  MEMORY. 

Yet  would  we  keep  thee  in  our  heart  — 
Would  fix  our  favorite  on  the  scene  — 

Xor  let  thee  utterly  depart 

And  be  as  if  thou  ne'er  hadst  been. 

And  so  there  rise  these  lines  of  verse 
On  lips  that  rarely  form  them  now; 

While  to  each  other  Ave  rehearse: 

Such  icayx,  such  arts,  such  looks  hadst  thou . 

We  stroke  thy  broad,  brown  paws  again, 
We  bid  thee  to  thy  vacant  chair, 

We  greet  thee  by  the  window-pane, 
We  hear  thy  scuffle  on  the  stair. 

Thy  memory  lasts  both  here  and  there, 
And  thou  shall  live  as  long  as  we. 

And  after  that thou  dost  not  care; 

In  us  was  all  the  world  to  thee. 

MATTHEW  ARNOLD. 
( "  Lines  on  Geist's  Grave." ) 


OUR     DICK. 


CHAPTER   I. 

"  In  durance  vile  here  must  I  wake  and  weep, 
And  all  my  frowsy  couch  in  sorrow  steep." 

"His  locked,  lettered,  braw  brass  collar 
Showed  him  the  gentleman  and  scholar." 

JITTLE  DICK  came  to  us  from 
the  Pound.  Now,  the  Pound  is 
not  a  nice  place,  to  be  sure;  but 
even  good  men — for  instance,  John  Bun- 
yan,  who  wro^te  "Pilgrim's  Progress  "- 
have  been  put  into  jail ;  so  it  is  not  strange 
that  quiet  and  respectable  dogs  like  ours 
should  be  taken  up  for  no  fault  of  their 
own,  and  made  to  suffer  for  their  wicked 


14  OUR  DICK. 

or  stingy  masters,  who  will  not  pay  the 
license  tax. 

My  wife  declares,  and  I  quite  agree 
with  her,  that  if  ever  poverty  is  a  crime, 
it  is  when  a  man  has  the  assurance  to 
become  the  master  of  a  dog  and  has  not 
the  money  to  pay  the  license.  What 
right  has  such  a  fellow  to  undertake 
such  a  responsibility?  I  should  like  to 
know.  A  dog  cannot  be  expected  to  trot 
up  to  the  City  Hall  and  buy  his  own  tag. 
Even  the  poor  dogs  who  work  for  a  liv- 
ing, leading  blind  men  about,  turning 
wheels  for  knife-grinders,  and  the  like, 
never  have  any  ready  money.  If  such 
a  dog  happened  to  have  a  kind  master, 
willing  to  give  him  a  share*  in  the  profits 
of  the  business,  the  poor  fellow  has  no 
pocket  to  put  the  money  in.  As  for  his 
laying  by  anything  for  a  rainy  day,  dogs 


OUR  DICK.  15 

are  too  free  and  generous  to  do  anything 
like  that. 

You  will  know  by  this  that  it  was  by 
no  fault  of  ours  that  Dick  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  dog-catchers.  I  should  be 
ashamed  to  look  any  honest  dog  in  the 
face  if  each  first  of  July  morning  did  not 
find  me  at  the  City  Hall,  for  the  purpose 
of  buying  my  little  brown  friend  the 
bright  new  tag  which  marks  the  begin- 
ning of  another  of  the  many  years  in 
which  he  has  been  my  daily  companion. 

As  I  have  said  before,  we  did  not  own 
Dick  —  nor  did  Dick  own  us,  as  he  seems 
now  to  think — when  he  was  thrust  into 
that  dismal  place  where  dogs  abandon 
hope.  The  fact  is,  we  were  at  our  wits' 
end,  almost,  for  a  long  time  when  we  tried 
to  find  out  to  whom  he  belonged,  and  how 
it  happened  that  a  gentleman  of  such 


16  OUR  DICK. 

undeniable  quality  ever  got  mixed  up 
with  the  rowdy  crowd  the  poor  chaps  in 
the  Pound  commonly  are. 

When  two  men,  as  it  sometimes  hap- 
pens, claim  the  same  dog  and  go  to  law 
about  it,  it  is  the  dog's  testimony  that 
decides  the  case.  Here,  in  a  San  Fran- 
cisco court,  this  very  thing  happened 
only  the  other  day.  A  pettifogging  law- 
yer may  badger  a  man  in  the  witness-box 
till  he  forgets  his  own  name;  but  there 
is  no  lawyer  smart  enough  to  muddle  a 
dog's  wits  so  that  he  will  not  know  his 
master.  The  case  of  dispute  about  mas- 
ters I  have  just  spoken  of,  however,  was 
an  easy  one  to  settle  compared  with  that 
of  Dick  vs.  John  Doe,  Richard  Roe,  and 
parties  unknown,  to  determine  own- 
ership. This  cause  was  on  trial  for  a 
long  time  in  our  home  court  before  the 


OUR  DICK.  17 

sitting  magistrates  could  agree  on  an 
opinion. 

Dick  was  fetched  to  our  house  from  the 
Pound  by  a  friend,  to  whom  we  had  con- 
fided our  desire  for  a  good  dog.  From 
that  quarter,  he  told  us,  he  had  supplied 
his  own  wants  in  this  kind,  and  he  offered 
to  make  an  effort  on  our  behalf.  Thus  it 
was  that  we  secured  the  subject  of  this 
story,  now  some  ten  years  ago,  at  an  ex- 
pense of  two  bright  silver  dollars. 

When  the  little  fellow  was  brought  to 
our  door  he  had  the  appearance  of  a  dog 
that  had  been  making  not  one,  but  many 
nights  of  it.  This  side  of  Constantinople 
one  could  hardly  find  such  a  shabby- 
looking  doggie.  Directly  he  was  let  into 
the  hall,  his  first  movement  was  to  sit  up 
before  our  good  Marie,  who  had  opened 
the  door,  and  extend  his  small  right  paw 


18  OUR  DICK. 

for  a  friendly  shake.  The  poor  chap 
seemed  to  realize  that  here,  at  last,  was 
rest  and  shelter,  after  the  trials  of  the 
wretched  Pound. 

It  is  dear  Charles  Lamb,  I  believe,  who 
tells  the  story  of  a  tiny  chimney-sweep 
who  was  found  sound  asleep  on  a  sump- 
tuous bed  in  one  of  the  chambers  of  a 
ducal  palace.  As  it  fell  out,  the  little 
blacky  was  the  long-lost  heir.  So  it  was 
with  Master  Dick;  for  after  he  had  re- 
freshed the  inner  dog  with  a  most  pro- 
digious "  tuck  out,"  and  been  put  to  rights 
by  undergoing  a  regular  Turkish  bath, 
our  little  tramp  was  transformed  into  the 
brightest  and  handsomest  Scotch  terrier 
that  you  could  find  from  John  o'  Groats 
to  Edinburgh  Castle.  He  was  a  dog  of 
quality,  without  doubt,  John  Knox  him- 
self was  not  a  stouter  fighter,  and  his  big. 


OUR  DICK.  19 

sparkling  black  eyes  showed  that  we  had 
here  something  of  the  tender  and  true 
heart  of  Robbie  Burns.  Of  course,  all 
this  was  not  found  out  in  a  day.  At  first 
my  wife  was  rather  slow  to  take  much  of 
a  liking  to  the  little  Scotch  immigrant, 
thinking,  perhaps,  that  he  came  over  in 
the  steerage;  but  this  prejudice  did  not 
last  long. 


CHAPTER  II. 

1  The  best  laid  schemes  o'  mice  and  men 
Gang  aft  a'gley." 

are  rather  fussy  people  about 
our  house  and  belongings,  and 
at  first  thought,  as  most  people 
do,  that  a  dog-house  having  all  the  mod- 
ern improvements  should  meet  the  re- 
quirements of  even  the  most  fastidious 
animal.  Such  a  house  was  therefore 
ordered  from  the  best-skilled  artisan  that 
we  could  hear  of.  The  tenement  was 
duly  erected  in  the  back  yard,  Richard 
watching  building  operations  with  anx- 
ious interest,  and  afterward  greatly  enjoy- 
ing his  little  house-warming. 

About  this  time  the  rainy  season  came 
on,  and  the  nights  were  damp  and  cold. 


22  OUR  DICK. 

As  Dick's  house  was  well  upholstered 
with  the  freshest  and  cleanest  straw 
we  could  buy  for  money,  he  made  no 
complaints;  but  as  Christmas-time  ap- 
proached, and  it  became  stormy,  my  wife 
began  to  fidget  a  good  deal,  intimating 
that  colds  and  rheumatism  were  about, 
that  such  maladies  were  quite  fatal  to 
dogs,  and  that  a  nice  warm  bed  by  the 
kitchen  fire  might  perhaps  save  Master 
Dick  from  having  la  grippe. 

It  fell  out  at  this  period,  one  very 
rainy  and  windy  night  as  I  was  sitting 
by  the  fire  reading  "King  Lear,"  that 
when  I  had  concluded  the  passage,  "  poor, 
naked  wretches,  wheresoe'er  you  are,  that 
bide  the  pelting  of  this  pitiless  storm," 
my  wife  dropped  the  work  she  had  in 
hand  and  hurriedly  left  the  room.  She 
returned  before  long  somewhat  moist,  but 


OUR  DICK.  23 

with  a  Good-Samaritan  look,  as  one  who 
had  been  relieving  the  afflicted. 

I  resumed  my  book  and  asked  no 
questions ;  but  the  next  day,  happening 
in  the  kitchen  pretty  early  in  the  morn- 
ing, I  found  that  the  late  occupant  of  our 
dog-house  had  been  provided  with  com- 
fortable quarters  in  the  cook's  domain. 
I  well  knew  the  prime  mover  in  Master 
Richard's  translation. 

Dick  seemed  to  take  his  promotion 
rather  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  as  due 
to  one  who  had  merited  the  attention. 
Thereafter  he  wholly  neglected  his  for- 
mer abode,  seeking  his  new  lodgings  each 
night  with  great  regularity. 

Not  long  after  this  our  Scottish  friend 
began  to  show  that  fierce  dislike  of  cats 
that  has  since  been  a  marked  trait  in  his 
disposition.  To  account  for  this,  we 


24  OUR  DICK. 

sometimes  fancied  that  he  was  captured 
by  the  dog-catchers  on  a  day  when  he 
had  set  out  from  his  former  home  to 
battle  with  some  feline  enemy,  and  that 
he  had  sworn  a  small  doggie  oath  to  ex- 
terminate all  the  cats  in  San  Francisco. 
Be  this  as  it  may,  his  warfare  on  these 
animals  was  sharp  and  incessant.  His 
dislike  of  under-bred  cats  was  especially 
strong.  To  cats  of  good  extraction,  glossy 
coat  and  good  general  deportment,  his 
antipathy  was  less  fierce;  but  a  "roofer" 
he  could  not  abide,  and  he  would  do  his 
utmost  to  destroy  such,  root  and  branch. 
Hearing  the  doleful  wail  of  a  "roofer" 
on  our  garden-wall,  he  would  drop  the 
most  inviting  bone  that  ever  came  from 
cook  Mary's  store  of  dog  provender. 

A  "  roofer  "  is  a  cat  who,  through  mis- 
fortune or  contrary  disposition,  has  taken 


OUR  DICK.  25 

to  evil  courses.  When  a  cat  once  em- 
barks on  such  a  career,  his  case  (for  they 
are  mostly  of  that  sex)  is  quite  hopeless. 
When  you  see  a  cat  neglect  his  regular 
business  and  spend  his  time  loafing 
around  ash-barrels,  or  trying  to  steal 
meat  from  the  butcher's  shop  when  the 
butcher-boy  is  hard  at  work  "stoning  a 
Chinaman,  you  may  be  sure  that  cat  is  a 
"  roofer,"  and  cannot  give  a  good  account 
of  himself.  You  may  readily  suppose, 
therefore,  that  a  gentleman  like  Dick, 
who  had  important  affairs  of  his  own  to 
mind,  as  well  as  those  of  his  friends, 
would  have  no  such  creatures  on  our 
premises. 

It  would  sometimes  happen  that  when 
he  was  asleep  by  the  kitchen  fire  and 
Mary  busy  reading  one  of  those  funny 
books  that  tell  you  what  lots  of  money 


26 


OUR  DICK. 


you  are  to  have,  and  whom  you  are 
going  to  marry,  that  a  "roofer"  would 
try  to  slink  in.  But,  somehow  or  other, 
Dick  knew  of  his  presence  at  once,  and, 
despite  the  "roofer's"  cleverness  with  his 
claws  and  teeth,  he  soon  retired,  often 
writh  hardly  enough  fur  on  his  back  to 
make  a  doll's  muff. 


CHAPTER  III. 

"  Kings  may  be  blest,  but  Tarn  was  glorious, 
O'er  a'  the  ills  of  life  victorious." 

(HOUGH  not  by  any  means  in- 
different to  butcher's  meat,  at 
the  time  when  Dick  was  to  be 
heard  of  in  the  kitchen  he  began  to 
show  an  uncommon  dislike  to  those  whis- 
tling youngsters  who  so  recklessly  pitch 
mutton-chops  and  prime  cuts  into  cus- 
tomers' premises.  The  Supervisor  of  our 
ward,  in  private  life  a  butcher,  supplied 
our  household  with  meat,  delivered  by 
one  of  the  most  pestiferous  young  scamps 
that  ever  drove  a  cart.  This  fellow  cared 
nothing  at  all  for  the  civic  virtues  which 
had  given  his  master  a  good  start  on  the 
road  to  Congress.  His  intimates  during 


28  OUR  DICK. 

leisure  hours,  as  one  might  expect,  were 
chiefly  bull -dogs,  game  chickens  and 
pugilists.  To  run  down  old  women  at 
street  crossings,  or  to  annoy  children  and 
animals,  gave  him  unbounded  delight. 
Such  a  game  he  tried  one  morning  with 
Dick,  but  the  victory  remained  with  the 
four-footed  animal,  and  the  brute  with 
two  feet  had  to  visit  the  "misfit  pants 
parlor"  before  he  could  serve  any  more 
of  his  master's  customers  oil  that  day. 

This  was  years  ago,  but  since  then  our 
doggie  has  despised  butchers  and  all  their 
tribe;  even  the  sight  of  a  respectable 
householder  carrying  home  his  Thanks- 
giving turkey  excites  his  anger  and  con- 
tempt. You  all,  I  dare  say,  remember 
the  story  of  the  elephant  who  threw  the 
water  on  the  tailor  a  long,  long  time 
after  he  had  treated  him  cruelly.  I  think 


OUR  DICK.  29 

Dick's  recollection  of  an  insult  shows  that 
other  animals  than  elephants  have  good 
memories. 

Our  small  Scottish  friend  in  a  little 
time  seemed  ill  at  ease  in  his  new  lodg- 
ings—  the  kitchen.  He  got  on  quite 
comfortably  in  business  hours  when  there 
were  rugs  to  be  shaken  on  the  porch,  or 
there  were  cats  to  hunt  in  the  garden; 
but  the  tone  of  society  in  that  depart- 
ment of  our  household  seemed  not  quite 
to  his  liking,  and  his  increasing  reticence 
with  the  cook  and  chambermaid  was  the 
subject  of  comment,  both  above  and  be- 
low stairs.  When  his  work  was  over  for 
the  day  he  would  watch  his  chance,  slip 
up  stairs  and  casually  drop  into  the 
drawing-room  or  the  library.  At  such 
times  the  look  of  his  bright  black  eyes 
was  one  of  mild  curiosity,  and  his  little 


30  OUR  DICK. 

abbreviated  rudder  of  a  tail  wagged  in  a 
doubtful  way,  as  if  he  feared  ejectment. 

It  was  noticed  also  that  Dick  began  to 
put  in  an  appearance  in  the  dining-room 
with  the  soup,  and  as  he  was  an  early 
riser  and  liked  a  hot  breakfast,  he  was 
on  hand  at  that  meal  also.  At  first  we 
thought  this  sort  of  thing  would  never 
do.  We  might  perhaps  allow  a  well- 
bred  cat  under  our  mahogany,  but  as 
for  having  a  dog  in  the  dining-room — 
that  was  quite  out  of  the  question.  But 
persistency  wins  with  dogs  as  with  men. 
Dick  was  not  to  be  put  off,  or  put  out. 
The  garrison  finally  capitulated  —  the 
terms  exacted  by  the  attacking  force  be- 
ing a  seat  at  the  table. 

Thus  it  came  about  that  we  have  sat 
three  at  table  since  the  time  I  speak  of, 
except  on  occasions  of  ceremony,  or  when 


OUR  DICK. 


:\\ 


we  had  as  guests  those  queer  people  who 
have  begun  to  show  the  first  signs  of 
coming  lunacy  by  hating  such  honest 
folk  as  dogs.  I  must  say  that  the  man- 
ners of  our  regular  guest  have  been  quite 
correct  and  satisfactory  —  much  better,  in 
fact,  than  the  deportment  of  some  little 
folk  I  know  of,  of  the  same  age,  who 
wear  frocks. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

"His  very  foot  has  music  in't 
As  he  comes  up  the  stair." 

JF  you  let  a  camel  once  get  his 
head  into  your  tent,  it  is  said, 
nothing  in  the  world  will  pre- 
vent the  speedy  entrance  of  the  burden- 
bearing  portion  of  the  animal.  Now  that 
our  canny  little  Scot  shared  his  meals 
with  us,  you  will  not  be  surprised  to  learn 
that  he  began  to  think  that  his  bedroom 
(the  kitchen)  was  not  quite  in  keeping 
with  his  improved  social  position.  For 
a  while  he  took  but  faint  interest  in  cats, 
scratched  his  head  often,  and  seemed  to 
be  pondering  a  very  important  question. 
It  happened,  one  evening,  that  we  were 
talking  of  the  benefits  of  early  rising,  as 


34  OUR  DICK. 

people  will  sometimes  do  who  never  by 
any  chance  get  up  early;  of  the  million- 
aires who  cannot  sleep  after  six  in  the 
morning,  and  of  old  Parr,  who  never, 
under  any  circumstances,  missed  a  sun- 
rise. At  this  we  noticed  that  Mr.  Dick 
seemed  to  listen  more  attentively  to  our 
conversation  than  was  his  wont,  and  that 
he  pricked  up  his  ears  in  a  lively  way. 
About  half-past  five  the  next  morning 
we  were  awakened  by  a  most  unusual 
scratching  at  our  chamber  door,  upon 
opening  which  Dick  bounced  in,  barking 
loudly  and  showing  much  excitement. 

We  paid  no  special  attention  to  this 
freak  that  morning,  but,  to  our  surprise, 
the  same  thing  occurred  a  little  later  the 
next  day  and  the  day  after.  This  was 
the  entering  wedge,  and  our  friend  soon 
had  the  run  of  the  house  upstairs  as  well 


OUR  DICK.  35 

as  down.  We  found  that  Master  Dick, 
when  on  his  little  exploring  expeditions, 
had  discovered  that  the  large  closet  in 
our  chamber  was  a  good  place  for  him  to 
take  the  forty  or  more  winks  of  sleep 
which  he  so  much  enjoyed.  Now  that 
he  could  go  where  he  liked,  it  became 
his  habit  to  resort  hither  each  day,  and 
it  was  here  he  slept  at  night. 

It  happened,  one  morning,  that  a  rat 
of  uncommon  and  preposterous  size  was 
reported  by  our  cook  as  having  been  seen 
in  the  woodshed.  Dick  was  at  once  put 
on  the  scent,  and,  after  some  uncommonly 
clever  detective  work,  found  the  creature 
and  left  him  dead  on  the  field.  The  vic- 
tory was  dearly  bought,  however,  for  the 
excitement  of  the  fray  brought  the  little 
fellow's  first  serious  illness. 

The  next  morning  we  missed  him  at 


36  OUR  DICK. 

breakfast,  and  he  was  not  visible  at  lunch 
time.  This  caused  us  to  look  into  this 
most  unusual  absence.  We  searched  for 
our  missing  friend  in  the  closet  which 
he  had  appropriated  for  rest  and  reflec- 
tion, and  found  him  curled  up  in  the  cor- 
ner, apparently  in  great  distress.  By  no 
amount  of  coaxing  could  he  be  got  to 
come  out  from  his  hiding-place,  and  it 
was  evident  that  something  very  serious 
had  happened.  We  found  that  he  could 
hardly  walk,  and  when  he  made  the  effort 
his  moans  were  piteous.  We  were  not 
then  familiar  with  the  ills  which  afflict 
the  doggie  tribe,  not  having  got  together 
our  long  row  of  books  which  tell  of  such 
ailments;  but  after  an  examination  of  the 
patient,  we  discovered  that  he  was  suffer- 
ing from  an  attack  of  rheumatism.  Now, 
when  one  of  the  human  species  has  that 


OUR  DICK.  37 

malady,  you  know  just  what  to  do,  but 
with  a  dog  it  is  different.  In  Dick's  case 
each  member  of  our  household  had  a  dif- 
ferent remedy.  The  cook  thought  that  a 
horse-chestnut  tied  about  the  patient's 
neck  would  be  just  the  thing,  while  the 
chambermaid  was  sure  that  one  of  those 
queer  little  magnetic  rings,  if  put  on  the 
sufferer's  right  paw,  would  speedily  bring 
him  round.  My  wife,  who  acted  as  senior 
consulting  physician,  was  for  trying  chlo- 
roform liniment,  and  accordingly  this  was 
done. 

The  patient  bore  the  application  like  a 
young  Spartan,  but  the  result  was  any- 
thing but  satisfactory,  and  we  concluded 
that  only  as  a  remover  of  superfluous  hair 
had  the  remedy  any  effect  —  at  least,  on 
dogs.  Through  our  blundering  kindness 
we  had  doubled  our  little  friend's  pain. 


.'UJ83G 


38  OUR  DICK. 

He  made  no  complaint,  but  we  could  see 
by  his  quivering  eyes  that  he  suffered 
greatly. 

We  had  been  told  that  those  fellows  — 
mostly  alleged  members  of  foreign  soci- 
eties, with  a  smashed-up  alphabet  chas- 
ing after  their  names  to  show  their  high 
professional  standing — were  generally 
hostlers  who  doctored  dogs  to  get  drink 
money;  so,  instead  of  calling  in  one  of 
these  practitioners,  we  sent  for  our  own 
kind  doctor,  knowing  that  he  would  do 
as  much  for  a  suffering  dog  as  for  a  gouty 
capitalist,  and  not  charge  nearly  as  much. 
He  did  pull  the  patient  through,  but  re- 
covery was  slow  and  tedious.  Dick  had 
to  submit  to  many  uncomfortable  appli- 
cations, and  swallowed  many  unpleasant 
draughts.  The  recollection  of  these  has 
caused  him  to  hate  the  very  sight  of  a 


OUR  DICK.  39 

teaspoon,  which  to  this  day  he  will  run 
from,  hiding  away  until  he  thinks  the 
danger  has  passed. 

One  day,  before  Master  Richard  had 
got  quite  steady  on  his  legs,  he  painfully 
hobbled  to  the  stairs  and  tried  to  go 
down,  but  found  it  quite  out  of  the 
question.  We  wished  much  to.  gratify 
the  little  fellow's  desire  for  a  bit  of  fresh 
air.  A  sedan  chair,  something  like  those 
we  saw  in  Chicago  this  summer,  would 
have  done  the  business;  but  as  we  were 
not  provided  with  such  a  conveyance  we 
made  a  little  bed  of  shawls  and  pillows, 
on  which  Dick  embarked,  knowing  well 
its  object.  On  this  we  carefully  carried 
him  outdoors  into  the  sunshine,  and  then, 
after  a  little  time,  again  to  his  closet.  The 
operation  was  repeated  each  day  until  he 
could  run  about  without  difficulty. 


40  OUR  DICK. 

When  this  period  arrived,  we  thought 
that  Mr.  Dick  would  prefer  the  use  of  his 
own  legs  in  going  down  stairs;  but,  to  our 
amusement  and  surprise,  we  found  that 
he  expected  us  to  continue  the  comfort- 
able method  of  travel  he  had  enjoyed 
during  his  illness.  At  first  he  positively 
refused  to  walk  down,  and  it  was  comical 
enough  to  see  him  drag  the  pillows  and 
shawls  to  the  stairs,  as  if  anticipating 
that  they  would  be  needed.  This  led  us 
to  believe  that  our  infirm  passenger  had 
latterly  been  riding  when  he  was  quite 
able  to  walk.  Dogs,  in  their  way,  are  as 
cunning  as  men;  and  dogs  of  the  tramp 
species,  I  dare  say,  often  save  their  legs 
by  riding  on  the  brake-beams  of  railway 
cars,  just  as  the  human  tramps  do. 

It  was  Dick's  habit  each  day,  about 
the  luncheon  hour,  to  take  his  station 


OUR  DICK.  41 

at  a  window  where  be  could  look  up 
and  down  the  street,  and  watch  for 
the  home-coming  of  his  master.  So  reg- 
ular was  this  performance  that  the  grip- 
men  on  the  cable-cars  which  passed  our 
door  got  into  the  way  of  timing  the 
little  fellow's  appearance,  which  was 
always  at  twelve  o'clock  sharp.  The 
children  also  used  to  watch  for  Dick 
at  the  noon  hour,  and  his  absence  dur- 
ing his  illness  created  no  small  excite- 
ment among  the  little  folk  in  our  neigh- 
borhood. They  often  stopped  on  their 
way  to  school  to  ask  after  the  patient's 
health. 

I  think  that  Dick  greatly  appreciated 
all  these  kindly  attentions.  He  was 
always  very  friendly  with  small  people; 
but  since  his  recovery  he  has  shown 
marked  tenderness  for  youngsters,  of 


42  OUR  DICK. 

both  high  and  low  degree.  After  Dick's 
illness  we  noticed  that  he  liked  to  seek 
comfortable  chairs  where  he  could  rest 
the  little  bones  that  rheumatism  had 
somewhat  stiffened.  Thus  it  happened 
that  he  came  to  resort  to  our  large 
easy-chair  for  repose  during  the  day; 
and  after  dinner,  when  his  master  sat 
there  reading,  Dick  would  climb  over 
his  shoulder,  and,  perching  on  the  back 
of  the  chair,  take  a  comfortable  nap. 


CHAPTER  V. 

"His  ancient,  trusty,  drouthy  crony; 
Tarn  loved  him  like  a  vera  brother." 

JS  I  said  in  the  beginning,  the 
history  of  our  little  friend  be- 
fore he  was  fetched  to  our  house 
was  a  great  puzzle.  It  was  soon  after  his 
recovery  that  we  came  to  think  that  we 
had  at  last  solved  the  mystery.  The 
room  Dick  liked  the  best  looked  out 
upon  the  harbor  and  the  Berkeley  hills. 
Here  he  would  sit  by  the  hour,'  gazing 
intently  at  the  vessels  passing  out  or 
coming  to  anchor,  and  the  swiftly  mov- 
ing tugs  and  ferry-boats.  So  -fond  was 
he  of  these  sights,  that  he  got  almost  to 
neglect  his  regular  meals. 

One  day  about  this  time,  to  give  him 


44  OUR  DICK. 

a  little  outing,  we  took  him  across  to 
Oakland  on  the  ferry-boat.  I  had  never 
before  seen  him  show  so  much  pleasure 
and  excitement  as  he  exhibited  when 
reaching  the  wharf,  and  when  embark- 
ing on  the  boat  his  joy  was  unbounded. 
The  sights  by  the  waterside  seemed  quite 
familiar  to  him,  and  he  walked  the  upper 
deck  like  any  old  salt. 

When  we  returned  from  our  trip,  Dick 
was  loath  to  leave  the  ferry-boat,  and 
when  we  passed  some  of  the  piers  he 
seemed  very  anxious  to  cut  away  and 
board  some  of  the  ships  lying  alongside. 
H*e  greeted  several  Jack  tars  who  went 
by  in  an  affectionate  and  friendly  way,  as 
if  meeting  old  chums.  His  strange  in- 
terest in  nautical  matters  quite  surprised 
us,  but  it  led  us  to  think  that  he  had  been 
in  some  way  attached  to  the  sea.  In 


OUR  DICK.  45 

this  belief,  we  have  made  up  a  theory  as 
to  Master  Richard's  infancy  and  youth 
which,  to  us,  seems  quite  probable. 

Now,  there  are  lots  of  ships  coming  to 
San  Francisco  from  Scottish  ports.  Some- 
times the  shipmaster  has  his  wife  aboard, 
and  now  and  then  his  children  also.  A 
Scottish  family  ashore  or  afloat  without 
the  company  of  a  dog,  would  be  a  strange 
family  indeed.  As  we  imagined  the  story, 
Dick  must  have  taken  ship  at  Glasgow  or 
Greenock  with  his  and  the  vessel's  mas- 
ter, bound  for  San  Francisco.  I  do  not 
think  he  came  over  in  the  forecastle  or 
in  the  cook's  galley,  but  imagine  that  he 
lived  in  the  cabin  with  the  master  and 
his  family,  as  befitted  a  first-class  passen- 
ger— at  least,  when  not  on  dog  watch. 

In  due  time  the  good  ship  came  to 
anchor  in  the  bay,  and  as  Master  Rich- 


46  OUR  DICK. 

ard  was  a  native  of  Scotland  and  not  of 
China,  I  presume  the  Custom  House  folks 
let  him  go  ashore  when  he  liked,  without 
making  any  fuss  or  putting  him  in  jail 
until  they  could  find  out  what  the  judges 
at  Washington  thought  about  it.  It  is 
probable,  however,  that  the  little  foreigner 
stayed  by  the  ship  most  of  the  time,  over- 
looking the  unloading  of  the  cargo;  and 
as  his  master  intended  to  take  him  back 
on  the  return  voyage,  he  thought  it  was 
of  no  use  to  buy  for  him  a  license  tag  in 
San  Francisco. 

This  was  an  unlucky  thing  for  Master 
Dick;  and  I  fancy  that  the  next  time  his 
master  brought  a  dog  to  this  part  of  the 
world  he  made  sure  that  the  animal  was 
duly  tagged  as  the  law  directs.  One  day, 
as  we  think,  our  doggie  ventured  down 
the  gang-plank  when  all  hands  were  busy 


OUR  DICK.  47 

stowing  return  cargo,  and  being  a  new- 
comer in  the  country,  like  the  diminutive 
Christopher  Columbus  that  he  was,  he 
began  to  spy  out  the  land  'and  the  natives. 
Now,  some  of  the  natives  whose  cabins 
line  the  water  front  of  San  Francisco, 
I  am  sorry  to  say,  would  "shanghai" 
even  a  missionary  if  he  ventured  in  their 
quarters  after  nightfall.  To  "shanghai" 
means,  in  sailors'  slang,  to  kidnap  an 
unsuspecting  wayfarer  for  the  purpose  of 
making  him  an  involuntary  sailor,  for  a 
reward.  The  crews  of  merchant  ships, 
when  regular  sailors  are  scarce,  are  said 
to  be  recruited  in  this  way — just  as  were 
those  of  men-of-war  by  the  press-gang  in 
old  times. 

These  scurvy  rogues  know  the  good 
points  of  a  dbg  as  well  as  those  of  a 
man,  and  as  some  of  them  have  rat-pits 


48  OUR  DICK. 

attached  to  their  dens,  you  may  be  sure 
they  would  "shanghai"  on  sight  a  smart 
and  likely  terrier,  like  Dick.  This, 
we  fancy,  was  our  unsuspecting  little 
Scotch  friend's  fate,  who,  not  being  used 
to  the  low  society  in  which  he  found  him- 
self, bolted  on  the  first  opportunity,  was 
captured  by  the  Pound  men,  and  fell,  as 
I  have  related,  into  his  present  owners' 
hands.  So  the  poor  chap,  in  his  little 
way,  got  into  quite  the  same  troubles 
that  beset  the  Prodigal  Son  at  the  end 
of  his  giddy  career,  and  then,  like  that 
same  prodigal,  happily  found  kind  friends 
to  give  him  cheer  and  welcome. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

"Some  have  meat  and  canna  eat, 
And  some  would  eat  that  want  it; 
But  we  have  meat  and  we  can  eat, 
Sae  let  the  Lord  be  thankit." 

is  surprising  how  a  dog's  little 
wits  will  grow  after  long  and 
friendly  intercourse  with  hu- 
man kind.  Some  of  those  cruel  scientific 
folks,  who  use  dogs  as  prying  children 
do  dolls,  to  find  out  what  kind  of  saw- 
dust they  hold,  think  we  should  have  a 
more  brotherly  feeling  for  monkeys  than 
for  dogs,  as  they  are  nearer  akin  to  us. 
Perhaps  they  are,  but  I  would  rather  be 
on  intimate  terms  with  a  polite  and  intel- 
lectual dog  than  to  be  loved  by  a  whole 
wilderness  of  monkeys.  These  animals 
can  open  cocoanuts  very  cleverly,  to  be 


50  OUR  DICK, 

sure,  and  they  amuse  us  —  their  big  and 
little  relatives — at  the  menagerie,  but  I 
should  like  to  make  the  acquaintance  of 
a  monkey  who  understands,  as  does  our 
dog  Dick,  quite  one  hundred  words. 

Our  doggie,  like  other  small  people,  is 
very  fond  of  sweets,  and  the  casual  men- 
tion of  these  in  conversation  when  he  is 
within  hearing  alwa'ys  excites  his  live- 
liest interest.  Now,  candy,  sugar  and 
cake,  except  on  birthdays  or  like  festive 
occasions,  should  not  be  given  to  dogs. 
We  have,  therefore,  found  it  necessary  to 
Dick's  welfare  and  to  our  own  comfort, 
when  he  is  about  and  we  have  occasion 
to  use  such  words  in  conversation  as 
"sweety,"  "cake,"  "or  candy,"  to  spell 
them  out.  Other  words,  on  the  contrary, 
which  revive  unpleasant  memories  in 
Dick's  mind,  such  as  "bath,"  "medicine," 


OUR  DICK.  51 

"  spoon,"  at  once  create  a  feeling  of  dis- 
gust. I  have  often  seen  him  run  off 
and  hide  when  hearing  these  talked  of. 
To  speak  of  "grass,"  which  we  feed  to 
him  as  a  tonic  when  his  system  needs 
bracing  up,  delights  him  greatly.  At 
times,  when,  like  Nebuchadnezzar  of  old, 
Dick  has  felt  a  strong  appetite  for  this 
kind  of  salad,  so  grateful  to  dogs,  he  has 
awakened  his  master  at  "ever-so-much 
o'clock  in  the  morning,"  and  on  such 
occasions  no  more  sleep  can  be  had  in 
our  household  until  the  prescription  is 
filled. 

During  the  earlier  years  as  a  member 
of  our  household,  Dick  was  a  homestayer; 
but,  with  increasing  years,  his  strong  and 
tender  affection  for  his  protectors  has 
caused  him  to  refuse  food  and  pine  at 
their  absence.  So  it  has  come  about  that 


52  OUR  DICK. 

we  have  taken  our  recent  journeys  in 
company  with  a  rather  stout  and  dig- 
nified Scotch  terrier,  who,  by  long  and 
frequent  travel  and  the  kind  permission 
of  those  in  authority  in  such  places,  is 
quite  as  much  at  home  on  railway  cars 
and  in  hotels  as  any  commercial  traveler. 
In  Master  Richard's  favor,  the  rule  one 
sees  in  hotels — "Dogs  must  be  put  in 
charge  of  the  porter" — has  been  waived 
at  establishments  I  will  not  name,  and  at 
such  he  has  been  made  quite  happy  and 
comfortable. 

I  have  said  that  he  was  a  creature  of 
exemplary  manners ;  but  in  truth  it  must 
be  confessed  that  age  has  brought  with 
it  one  infirmity  which  has  caused  his 
friends  regret,  and  often  mortification, — 
this  is,  his  antipathy  to  members  of  his 
own  species,  save  those  of  inexperience 


OUR  DICK.  53 

and  tender  years.  Last  year,  being  in  a 
lovely  resort  in  Southern  California,  some 
kind  friends  invited  us  one  evening  to 
dinner,  urging  also  the  company  of  our 
traveling  companion.  As  it  happened, 
our  entertainers  had  also  an  esteemed 
canine  friend,  whom  they  adorned  with 
best  collar  and  bright  ribbon  in  honor 
of  the  feast.  Our  doubts  and  fears  came 
thick  upon  us  as  we  neared  our  des- 
tination. We  hoped  that  Dick  would 
conceal  his  private  griefs,  and  deport 
himself  as  befitted  the  occasion,  but  he 
seemed  to  scent  a  quarrel  in  the  air. 

When,  upon  entering  the  house  of  our 
kind  host,  our  four-footed  tourist  caught 
sight  of  the  well-cared-for  little  dog,  with 
whom  it  was  expected  he  would  make 
merry,  he  at  once  put  on  his  war  paint, 
and  made  ready  to  give  him  a  severe 


54  OUR  DICK. 

drubbing  on  the  spot.  This  was  the  last 
thing  that  had  been  looked  for  by  his 
would-be  entertainer,  and,  with  surprise, 
not  unmixed  with  anger,  he  took  refuge 
on  the  piano,  there  to  collect  himself 
and  prepare  to  resent  the  insult,  his 
adversary  meantime  making  vigorous 
efforts  to  dislodge  him.  The  household 
was  in  an  uproar,  and  we  tried  to  make 
peace  between  the  besieger  and  the  be.- 
sieged,  but  all  to  no  purpose,  and  quiet 
was  restored  only  by  the  removal  of  the 
dog  who  had  had  the  quarrel  thrust 
upon  him. 

Thus,  had  it  not  been  for  the  sweet 
courtesy  of, our  friends  and  entertainers, 
would  Master  Dick,  like  the  shade  of 
Banquo,  have  marred  the  feast ;  but  they 
invited  him  to  a  seat  at  table — which  he 
occupied  with  an  air  of  triumphant  dig- 


OUR  DICK. 


55 


nity, — extenuated  his  gross  breach  of 
good  manners,  and  cheered  him  on  his 
way  homeward.  This  episode  in  Dick's 
career  is  the  only  discreditable  one  I 
know  of;  but  it  is  not  his  kind  alone 
that  is  puffed  up  by  prosperity. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"Perhaps  it  may  turn  out  a  song, 
Perhaps  turn  out  a  sermon." 

JIOON  after  we  returned  to  our 
home  in  the  city;  and  it  was 
not  long  before  an  event  hap- 
pened that  showed  that  the  bad  conduct 
of  our  little  traveler  was  only  a  flaw 
in  an  otherwise  mild  and  gentle  disposi- 
tion. 

Just  at  this  time  a  severe  and  dan- 
gerous illness  came  to  his  best  friend. 
Then  it  was  that  the  little  creature  showed 
a  depth  of  affection  which  deeply  touched 
the  hearts  of  all  in  our  household.  The 
master  of  the  house  having  been  called 
suddenly  home,  found  that  the  dog  real- 
ized fully  as  well  as  he  what  had  hap- 


58  OUR  DICK. 

pened.  The  poor  animal,  in  his  intensity 
of  grief,  kept  bounding  from  the  floor  to 
the  bed,  whereon  his  almost  unconscious 
friend  lay,  and  from  the  bed  to  the  floor 
again,  moaning  piteously  the  while,  and 
fondling  the  hands  that  had  so  often 
fed  him. 

The  doctor,  who  soon  came,  seemed  to 
the  dog  a  minister  of  evil  rather  than  of 
good.  When  the  physician  approached 
the  patient's  bedside  Dick  sprang  be- 
tween the  two,  growling  ominously,  as 
if  to  ward  off  some  impending  danger- 
Although  the  affectionate  creature  soon 
realized  that  no  harm  was  intended,  he 
could  hardhr  be  got  to  give  up  the  posi- 
tion he  had  taken  as  the  guardian  of  his 
dearest  friend.  When  gently  put  out  of 
the  room,  he  would  return  and  cry  out 
at  the  door,  and  if  not  admitted  would 


OUR  DICK.  59 

lay  himself  down,  almost  immovable,  at 
the  threshold. 

Dick  soon  got  to  understand  that  both 
doctor  and  nurse  were  there  for  some 
good  purpose.  He  made  friends  with 
the  nurse,  welcomed  the  doctor  when  he 
made  his  frequent  visits,  and  showed 
great  personal  interest  in  the  proceedings 
when  the  patient  took  medicine  or  food, 
expecting,  of  course,  to  share  in  the  latter. 
When  his  friend  got  able  to  resume  her 
walks  abroad,  with  Dick  as  a  companion, 
so  boundless  was  his  joy  that  we  some- 
times feared  that  his  life  would  be  for- 
feited to  his  affection.  * 

The  hand  of  time  falls  less  lightly  on 
dogs  than  on  their  protectors;  their  hearts 
burn  with  the  fire  of  such  an  eager  and 
strong  affection  that  their  span  of  life  is 
but  brief.  Our  little  friend  and  house- 


60  OUR  DICK. 

mate  is  falling  somewhat  into  the  sear, 
the  yellow  leaf;  hisjourneyings  are  about 
over.  We  notice  that  he  is  more  sedate; 
less  blithesome  and  merry  than  in  the  old 
days,  and  now  and  then  we  find  a  dog's 
small  tooth  on  the  carpet;  but  his  sturdy 
trust  in  his  friends,  and  fondness  for  those 
who  love  him,  seem  to  grow  stronger  as 
the  parting  time  comes  nearer.  Since 
our  Dick  carried  his  owner's  name  he 
has  never  been  struck  by  the  hand  of 
man,  and,  like  those  birds  of  the  untrav- 
eled  islands  old  voyagers  write  of,  which 
light  on  men's  shoulders  and  take  food 
from  their  hands,  he  sees  a  friend  in 
every  human  face. 

Ours  is  a  childless  home;  the  music 
of  children's  laughter,  which  we  some- 
times fancy  echoes  from  its  walls,  comes 
from  a  heavenly  choir.  Believe  it  not 


OUR  DICK.  61 

that  affection  for  human  kind  is  dimin- 
ished by  love  for  animals.  It  cannot  be 
that  those  whose  regard  for  God's  crea- 
tures does  not  exclude  the  dumb  and 
patient  ones  who  "live  by  man's  smile, 
and  perish  by  his  frown,"  should  care 
the  less  for  others  who  look  a  little  fur- 
ther into  the  clouds  that  enfold  both 
man  and  beast  alike. 

"  He  prayeth  best  who  loveth  best 
All  things,  both  great  and  small. 
For  the  dear  God  who  loveth  us 
He  made  and  loveth  all." 


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